Brief Summary
The story revolves around Evans, a cunning prisoner known for his escape attempts, who plans to take an O-level German exam. The prison staff, including the Governor, take elaborate precautions to prevent his escape during the exam, but Evans manages to outsmart them through a meticulously planned scheme involving fake phone calls, a disguised accomplice, and coded messages. Despite the Governor's efforts to recapture him, Evans ultimately escapes, revealing the extent of his cleverness and the involvement of accomplices both inside and outside the prison.
- Evans, a prisoner with a history of escapes, plans to take an O-level German exam.
- The prison staff implements strict measures to prevent his escape during the exam.
- Evans executes a complex plan involving disguises, coded messages, and accomplices.
- The Governor and prison officials are outwitted, leading to Evans' successful escape.
- The story highlights themes of deception, intelligence, and the fallibility of authority.
The Governor of Oxford Prison receives a request from the Secretary of the Examinations Board to allow a prisoner named Evans to take an A-level exam. Evans, who started night classes in O-level German the previous September, is described as eager to obtain an academic qualification. Despite having individual tuition due to being the only student in the class, the Secretary suggests giving him a chance. The Governor inquires about the procedure and is assured that all necessary materials will be sent. The Secretary confirms Evans' full name as James Roderick Evans and seeks assurance that he is not violent, to which the Governor replies that there is no record of violence and that Evans has been a star at the Christmas concert, albeit with an "inborn hobby of stealing." The Governor arranges for Evans to take the exam in his cell and agrees to have a priest from Saint Mary Mags invalidate it. The Secretary expresses a final concern about preventing Evans from talking.
Evans, known as "Evans the Break" due to his three previous prison escapes, is scheduled to have his German teacher meet him in the heavily guarded block. The teacher wishes him "gotten gluck," or good luck, for the exam the next day. Evans expresses his gratitude, acknowledging that he may surprise everyone despite having little chance of passing the O-level exam. The following morning, two visitors arrive to oversee Evans: Mr. Jackson, the senior prison officer on D-wing, and Officer Stevens, a recently appointed and rude-looking man.
Officer Stevens makes a remark about Evans being like "a little Einstein," to which Mr. Jackson corrects him, noting that Einstein was a mathematician and Jewish. Evans is reminded to shave, and Officer Stevens is instructed to remove the razor from the cell afterward. Evans questions the removal of his nail scissors and nail file, citing the Governor's orders. He pleads to keep his hat, which he considers a lucky charm, for the exam. Meanwhile, Stuart McLeery, the assigned exam investigator, departs for the prison wearing a black overcoat and carrying a suitcase containing a sealed paper envelope, a yellow invalidation form, a special authentication card, and a knife for cutting papers.
Evans shaves as Stevens brings in tables and chairs for the exam. Jackson instructs Evans to behave and points out the photographs on the wall, which Evans assumes will be taken down for the priest who will be sitting in. Evans questions the need for surveillance in his cell, pointing out the visible microphone. Jackson explains that the Governor doesn't trust him and will be listening in. At the main gate, Stuart McLeery signs the visitor's book and is escorted to D-wing by a prison officer, where he is greeted by Jackson. Stevens retrieves Evans' razor.
Stevens escorts McLeery to Evans' cell door and looks inside. It is 9:10 a.m. when the Governor switches on the microphone receiver and instructs Jackson to warn Evans about it. The Governor worries that Evans might try to take advantage of McLeery and considers the possibility that McLeery might have brought in a weapon. He calls Jackson and Stevens outside to voice his concerns. Jackson checks McLeery's clothes and suitcase, finding reading glasses and a half-inflated rubber ring, which McLeery explains is for his hemorrhoids. Jackson also finds a knife, which McLeery prefers to keep with him.
By 9:18 a.m., it is clear that the examination will begin late. Jackson tells Evans when to start and when there are five minutes left. Evans is instructed to write the paper name (021-1) in the top left corner, his index number (313) in the top right corner, and his center number (271) in the box below. At 9:20 a.m., Evans complains about Stevens breathing down his neck, making it difficult to concentrate. The Governor overhears and orders Jackson to remove Stevens from the cell. McLeery announces that the exam has started at 9:25 a.m.
At 9:40 a.m., the examination board calls, and the assistant secretary asks to speak to the Governor, stating that a correction slip was forgotten in the exam package. The Governor suspects a fake call or secret message but decides to check. He dials the examination board number and finds the line engaged. Two minutes later, he hears whispers in the cell from the microphone. McLeery instructs Evans to stop writing and listen to a correction: on page 3, line 15, the fourth word should be "Goldman" instead of "golden."
The phone rings again, this time from the court, needing a prison van and officers for a remand case. Stevens periodically checks on Evans through the hole, seeing him staring towards the door with his pen in his lips. At 10:50 a.m., Evans asks if he can put a blanket over his shoulders because he is cold. At 11:20 a.m., McLeery announces that only five minutes are left. At 11:22 a.m., the Governor calls and orders Stevens to accompany McLeery to the prison gate after the exam.
At 11:25 a.m., McLeery tells Evans to stop writing and put his sheets in order. After accompanying McLeery to the prison gate, Stevens returns to check on Evans and finds a man lying on Evans' chair with a blanket and blood dripping from his small beard. Stevens alerts Jackson, realizing the man is McLeery. They wonder who the man was who left the prison with Stevens. McLeery takes a handkerchief to his bleeding head. Jackson sends Stevens to call the police and ambulance. McLeery insists on getting the police and the Governor, stating that he knows where Evans is.
Sirens sound, doors are locked, and phones ring as prison officers react to the escape. McLeery, supported by Jackson and Stevens, reaches the prison yard. He shows the Governor the German paper with a photocopied sheet superimposed on the last page. The German text translates to instructions to follow the plan, noting that the important time is three minutes before the end of the examination and advising not to hit him too hard. Detective Superintendent Carter arrives and is briefed on the situation. McLeery claims to know where Evans is, and Carter takes him to investigate.
The last lines of the German text direct them from Ellsfield Way to the Headington roundabout. The Governor realizes that the examinations board is on Ellsfield Way, suggesting someone from the board was involved. He questions Jackson and Stevens about who took Evans to the main gates, realizing it was Stevens under a fake phone call made three minutes before the end of the exam. The Governor scolds Jackson for not noticing how Evans obtained a false beard and spectacles. He reads the German text again, which directs them to New Graben via the Headington roundabout, which he realizes is Newberry. He orders Jackson and Stevens to be taken to the police station.
The driver informs Chief Inspector Bell of the facts, and Bell speaks to the Governor on the phone, confident they will catch Evans. The Governor acknowledges Evans' cleverness but notes his carelessness in leaving the question paper behind. Carter reports that McLeery spotted Evans driving off along Ellsfield Way, but they lost him at the Headington roundabout. The Governor believes Evans is heading to Newberry based on the message on the question paper. He confirms that McLeery is at Radcliffe Hospital, but upon calling, he learns that the ambulance picked up someone from Ellsfield Way who has since vanished.
The real McLeery is later found tied up in his study, stating he had been there since 8:15 a.m. when two men came and tied him up. Inquiries in Newberry yield nothing. The prison realizes that Evans impersonated McLeery, who stayed in the cell, and that he was pretending to be McLeery when he told them he knew where Evans had gone. When Carter called the ambulance, Evans escaped.
Evans, having enjoyed fish and chips, returns to the Hotel Golden Lion, where he had booked a room. He finds everything his friends had promised in the car: soap, water, clothes, and a map. However, upon unlocking his bedroom door, he finds the Governor waiting for him. The Governor reveals that they knew about the plan due to the correction slip, which contained the name of the hotel and the exact time the exam started.
The Governor explains that the index and center numbers Evans wrote on the exam paper corresponded to a map reference pointing to Lanning Shipping Norton. He admits they hoped Evans would run off to Newberry. The Governor asks how Evans got the blood to pour over his head. Evans explains that it was pig's blood mixed with trisodium citrate to prevent clotting. He also reveals that his German teacher was an accomplice and that there was far more going on than the Governor expected.
As Evans is escorted to the prison van, he mentions to the Governor that he might take O-level Italian classes next September. The prison officer unlocks Evans' handcuffs and instructs the driver to drive fast, suggesting they head to Newberry. The silent officer who took him to the prison van was his own man, meaning Evans had the last laugh, and the Governor was outsmarted once again.
Transcript
Full transcript of “Evans Tries An O Level Class 12 animation | animated video in English”. Click a timestamp to open the video at that moment. Need another video? Use the YouTube transcript generator.
0:00 [Music] he is the governor of oxford prison a prisoner named evans wants to give an a-level exam so he has called the secretary of the examinations board it's a slightly unusual request governor but you should try to help just the one fellow you say yes a man named evans last september he started night classes in o level german he says he is very eager to get some academic qualification is he any good he was the only one in the class so you can say he had individual tuition let's give him a chance shall we
0:47 that's a pleasure of you what exactly is the procedure oh don't worry about that i will send you all the stuff what's his name you say evans james roderick evans just one thing governor he is not a violent kind of fellow is he no there's no record of violence he is pleasant he has been a star at the christmas concert he just has an inborn hobby of stealing probably you can arrange a room where no problem he is any cell of his own if you have no objections he can give
1:33 the exam there that's fine and we could easily get a priest from saint mary mags to invalidate yes the church seemed to have a lot of priests there isn't it then the secretary had a final thought are you sure you can stop him from talking thanks evans had escaped three times from prison because of this the officers called him evans the break at 8 30 p.m on the 7th of june his german teacher met him in the heavily guarded block gotten gluck evans sorry i said good luck
2:20 good luck for tomorrow oh thank you i mean thank sean you have no chance of passing the o-level exam of course but i may surprise everybody next morning at 8 30 am evan said two visitors good morning mr jackson this is indeed an honor mr jackson is the senior prison officer on d-wing he and evans have become warm enemies on the side stood officer stevens a rude looking man only recently appointed the job and how is our little einstein this morning then wasn't he a mathematician mr jackson and i think he was a jew mr jackson
3:08 give me a chance mr jackson i was just going to shave when you came in it reminds me mr stephens make sure you take his razor out of the cell when he has finished shaving clear one day he will do us a good and cut his bloody throat mr jackson was it you who took my nail scissors away and your nail file too look orders of the governor evans do you want to complain you've half an hour to smarten yourself up evans and take that bloody hat off
3:55 my hat huh do you know mr jackson it's the only thing that has ever brought me any kind of luck kind of lucky charm if you know what i mean and today i thought well with my exam and all that just this time and get shaving at 8 45 stuart mccleary who was assigned as his exam investigator left for the place it was quite cold so he wore a black overcoat he had a small suitcase including a sealed paper envelope a yellow invalidation form a special authentication card and a knife for cutting papers the two-hour examination was scheduled to start at 9 15 a.m evans
4:42 was shaving his face when stevens brought two tables chairs for the exam jackson told him behave yourself boy and these jackson pointed to the photographs on the wall off i was going to take them down a priest isn't he the man who is coming to sit in i mean and how do you know that well i had to sign forms didn't i can i ask you something mr jackson why did they have to surveil me in this cell he pointed his head at the microphone above the door they didn't do neat job it's easily visible they don't trust me
5:28 they're taking no chances evans nobody would take any chance with you who is going to listen their voice i'll tell you who is going to listen it's the governor himself he don't trust you a bloody inch and nor do i i'll be watching you like a hawk heavens just one more thing einstein yeah what's that good luck at the main gate stuart mccleary signs his name in the visitors book he walked with a prison officer to d-wing where he was greeted by jackson get evans razor well keep your eyes fixed stevens took mccleary upstairs and
6:14 finally stood before a cell door opened the hole and looked inside lexan sir stevens took the key and opened the cell lock it was 9 10 a.m when the governor switched on the microphone receiver he instructed jackson to warn evans about it here the cell is locked all the prison officers are on alert amongst other duties the invalidator had to ensure the strictest silence but still that doubt might evans try to take advantage of mccleary the governor sat up it's good that evans has no weapons but what about mccleary what if the innocent mccleary has brought in something a knife perhaps and what if evans uses the weapon to
7:00 capture him he reached for the phone and told his worry to jackson can you come outside for a minute mccleary sir you too stephens sir the governor is worried that you may have brought in a potential weapon which evans might use jackson lightly checked mccleary's clothes something hard here sir my reading glasses then jackson checked his suitcase he picked up each envelope but one object in mccleary's suitcase puzzled him he held up a half-inflated rubber ring do you mind telling why you've brought this sir you thinking of going for a swim sir if you must know i suffer from
7:47 hemorrhoids and when i'm sitting down for some time very sorry sir i didn't mean to uh he found the knife it's better keep it with me if you don't mind sir it was 9 18 a.m it was clear that the examination was going to begin late you've got to watch yes sir i'll be telling you when to start and again when you've five minutes left all right there is plenty more of writing paper if you need it now write the name of the paper 021-1 in the top left corner in the top right corner write your index
8:35 number 313 and in the box just below write your center number 271 all right 9 20 am now i'm going to he is going to stay here is he mr jackson has given me strict instructions too how can i concentrate on my exam with someone breathing down my neck christ sorry sir i didn't mean the governor heard the words he made call to jackson jackson ah good get stevens out of the cell will you i think we're overdoing things as you wish sir 9 25 a.m
9:24 mccleary announced that the exam has started at 9 40 a.m the examination board rang and the assistant secretary asked to speak to the governor hello assistant secretary of exam board this side oxford prison yes there is a correction slip which some fool had forgotten to place in the exam package could the governor please yes of course i'll put you to mr jackson and d-wing hold the line a minute was this the sort of the thing the governor had feared was the phone call a fake some signal some secret message the governor could check that he dialed the number of the examinations board he heard the sound of line engaged two
10:12 minutes later he heard some whispers in the cell from the microphone he heard will you please stop writing for a while mr evans and listen carefully note the correction on page 3 line 15 the fourth word should read goldman not golden and the whole phrase thus red zone golden and la when not some golden loin i had taken german in my sixth form and i remember about the agreements of adjectives the phone rang it was from court they needed a prison van and some prison officers remand case all the time stevens looked through the
10:57 hole at intervals to check if everything was okay every time same scene evans his pen in his lips staring towards door at 10 50 a.m please sir would you mind if i put a blanket over his shoulders sir it's cold isn't it okay at 11 20 a.m only five minutes are left mr evans at 11 22 a.m there was a call from the governor stevens picked up the phone and listened to the orders stevens was ordered to accompany mccleary to the prison gate after the exam was over at 11 25 a.m stop writing
11:43 please put your sheets in order thank you very much sir was it all right not too bad good mr stephens has evan's exam gone will oh i don't think so after accompanying mccleary to the prison gate stevens was happy because the governor asked me to see mclaren off and not jackson i'll go to contain for a cup of coffee but first i should take a last look at evans he entered d-wing and saw from the peephole into the cell
12:28 there laid a man on evan's chair with blanket and blood which was dripping from the small beard [Music] mr jackson there was no doubt that the man was mccleary but who was the man who went out to prison with stevens evans evans escaped mccleary took a handkerchief and held it to his bleeding head jackson arrived and sent stevens to ring to the police in the ambulance don't worry about the ambulance i'm all right get the police i know where he get the governor i know i know where sirens were sounding prison
13:14 officers made orders doors were locked and phones were ringing everywhere within a minute mccleary being supported by jackson and stevens reached the prison yard we must get you to the hospital immediately you've called the police yes yes they're on their way but i'm all right i'm all right look look here he opened the german paper which he had picked from the cell and showed the governor it's there do you see on the last page of the question paper a photocopied sheet was superimposed this was what mccleary was trying to tell on the page german text was written
13:59 which translates as you must follow the plan the important point in time is three minutes before the end of the examination don't hit him too hard a fast approaching car stopped at the prison yard from the car came out carter detective superintendent carter what the hell is happening sir christ who has hit him ellsfield way officer i know where evans what take him with you if you think he'll be all right he is the only one who seems to know what is happening carter opened the back door and helped mccleary go inside the car lapped away in the last lines of the german text was
14:47 written from ellsfieldway drive to the headington roundabout and do you know the examinations board was an else-filled way means someone from the board must have been involved in the escape plan the photo copied page pasted on question paper the correction slip i don't need to tell you what has happened do i which of you two stupids was it who took evans for a nice little walk to the main gates and waved him bye bye it was me sir just like you told me sir what just like i told you you say what the hell when he rang sir and told me to when was that you know sir
15:33 about three minutes before the end of the exam you blathering idiot man it wasn't me who rang you don't you realize do you remember in the german text was written that the important point of time is three minutes before the end of the exam means it was a fake call to distract the officers he turned to jackson as for you jackson how long have you been pretending you've got a brain eh well i'll tell you something jackson your skull is empty absolutely empty it was you who had spent two hours in evans so yesterday it was you who had reported that there
16:20 was nothing hidden then how had evans managed to get a false beard spectacles etc to pretend to be mccleary he also had some sort of weapon with which he had given mccleary such a terrible blow org a prison van stopped he again read the last line of the german text from ellsfield way drive to the huddington roundabout where you go straight over and make your way to new graben new graben where on the earth is it does it mean new grave new something newberry god yes driver take jackson and stevens to saint al
17:05 dates police station there ask for bell chief inspector bell got that the driver told bell all the facts and said him to talk to the governor on phone inspector bell said they will get evans what a beautiful plan it all had been what a clever fellow evans is although he was careless as he left that question paper behind but then we all made our mistakes somewhere now very very shortly mr clever clever evans will be back inside the cell sir mccleary had spotted evans driving off
17:50 along ellsfield way we got the number and chased him but at headington roundabout we lost him he must have returned back to the city no he's on his way to newbury but why do you think that evans had left the question paper in the cell on the last page is written a message it says from the huddington roundabout he will go to newberry it was a police job now not his the governor was just a good for a giggle governor that was all by the way carter i hope you managed to get mccleary to the hospital all right yes he is in radcliffe hospital now then the
18:37 governor ran the radcliffe mccleary you say yes he is a priest i don't think there's anyone yes there is you'll find one of your ambulances picked him up from elle's field way oh that we sent an ambulance but when we got there the fellow had gone no one seemed to know where he was just vanished later they found the real mccleary at his study he was tied on the chair and his mouth was blocked he said he had been there since 8 15 a.m when two men came and tied him inquiries in newberry produced nothing everyone in
19:23 the prison knew what had happened it was not that evans appeared like mccleary who had walked out it was evans who impersonated mccleary who stayed in the cell he didn't hit any mccleary he was himself pretending to be mccleary telling them he knew where evans has gone when carter called the ambulance he escaped the fish and chips were delicious i will return to the hotel i've booked hotel golden mine the receptionist wasn't the same girl who had booked his room my keys he thanked god that everything had gone smoothly in the car he had found everything his friends had promised
20:09 soap and water clothes the map he had got some good friends some very clever friends he unlocked his bedroom door he stood frozen as if he had just saw a witch it's not worth trying anything i've got men around the place in fact there were only two men women too didn't you think the girl in reception was rather sweet he sat on the chair it was that bloody correction slip i suppose well there are a few people who know a little german you know it wasn't really a mistake we hadn't been able to fix up any hotel the really important thing was for the
20:55 phone to ring just before the exam finished to get everyone out of the way for some minutes so we had to know exactly when the exam started didn't we and like a fool i presented you with that information on a plate well someone did so you see sir that correction slip killed two birds with one stone didn't it one the name of the hotel and the exact time the exam started for example nice name though some golden and low end for a golden lion hotel how did you know which golden lion it was there are hundreds of them in the same way you did evans
21:42 index number 313 center number 271 remember if you take a map of oxford shear you find that six-figure reference 313-2007 land since shipping norton yeah you're right [Music] huh we hoped you would run off to newberry we did evans could you really understand all that german in the question paper i couldn't i knew roughly what it was all about the governor stood up tell me one thing before we go how did you get all that blood to pour over your head clever sir very clever how to get some blood into a
22:30 cell eh i don't know if i ought to tell you after all i might want to use that trick again anything to do with the rubber ring for hemorrhoids perhaps clever though wasn't it must have been a tricky job nah sir no problem about that no the problem is cutting of the blood that's the big trouble we got the blood easy enough pig's blood but to stop it clotting you've to mix your actual blood with one-tenth of its volume of trisodium cheat rate didn't you know that sir we learn something new every day
23:17 come on boy they walked to the reception tell me evans how did you manage to plan all this business you've had no visitors no letters i've got a lot of friends though what's that supposed to mean my german teacher for a start you mean but he was from the technical college was he ever checked up on him sir god almighty there's far more going on than i expected always will be sir everything ready the van is ready sir a silent prison officer handcuffed evans and together they both clambered into
24:02 the backseat of the prison van see you soon evans cheerio sir i was just thinking i know your german is pretty good sir but do you know any more of these modern languages not very well why i just came to know that some o level italian classes are coming up next september perhaps you won't be with us next september evans maybe as the prison van turned right to the oxford road the prison officer unlocked evans handcuffs and told to the driver drive fast driver it won't take them
24:48 long to find us out where do you suggest we make four what about newberry [Laughter] [Music] the silent officer who took him to prison van was his own man so it was evans who had the last laugh and the governor just turned out to be a fool you
